Guam Kingfishers are extinct in the wild. Two chicks hatched at the National Aviary will play an important part in their future.
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- The Guam Kingfisher has been extinct in the wild for four decades, and there are only about 140 left in the world. But the National Aviary in Pittsburgh is part of a project to rebuild their population.
Two Guam Kingfisher chicks, known locally as sihek, hatched in the National Aviary's breeding center last month. The aviary says the chicks are the latest to join the Sihek Recovery Project, which plans on introducing the species on the island of Palmyra Atoll later this year.
After hatching, the chicks quickly took to the air while still in their incubator, hopping on a flight at the Pittsburgh International Airport with senior aviculturist Brianna Crane, bound for the Sedgwick County Zoo in Kansas City. Even the birds needed to go through TSA to fly, and the aviary said agents were careful with the precious cargo.
The two chicks made it safely to the zoo, where they'll join another Guam Kingfisher who hatched at the aviary earlier this year.
Fasten your seatbelts and get ready for takeoff: we have exciting Guam Kingfisher updates! TWO Guam Kingfisher chicks, known locally as sihek, recently hatched in the National Aviary’s Breeding Center. The best part? These two chicks are the latest to join the collaborative Sihek Recovery Project, which aims to introduce this Extinct in the Wild species on the island of Palmyra Atoll later this year. At the end of last month, National Aviary Senior Aviculturist Brianna Crane once again “carried on” the duo (plus their incubator) into a Delta Air Lines flight, with an ultimate destination of the Sedgwick County Zoo in Kansas City, Kansas. Pittsburgh International Airport’s TSA agents were careful with their incubator. Once boarded, Bri securely strapped them into their seat. These little chicks are now safely living in a Biosecurity Translocation Facility at the Sedgwick County Zoo – alongside other Guam Kingfisher chicks and juveniles including sindålu (meaning Little Warrior) a Cincinnati Zoo chick who hatched at the Aviary in May! As we wait for the new chicks to fledge, they were given a DNA test to determine sex. The first chick is a FEMALE named Långet, which means “heaven” or “sky” in CHamoru (the language of the Marianas Islands indigenous people). The second is a MALE named Mames, which means “sweet.” Stay tuned for these chicks’ next adventure, and a big thank you to all of our partners on this journey. www.aviary.org/conservation/saving-species/ssp/guam-kingfishers/
Posted by National Aviary on Monday, July 8, 2024
Guam Kingfishers have been extinct in the wild for four decades, the aviary says. Their population was devastated when invasive brown tree snakes arrived on Guam. Biologists rescued the remaining population and the birds are now under the care of an Association of Zoos and Aquariums Species Survival Plan. The aviary says the population has grown "considerably" while maintaining genetic diversity.
The Sihek Recovery Project is made up of several AZA-accredited zoos, including the National Aviary, that have the long-term goal of releasing and growing a Guam Kingfisher population in the wild, seeing their status downgraded from extinct in the wild to critically endangered. It would make them only the third species ever to achieve that status downgrade, the aviary says.
The two new chicks from the National Aviary represent hope that the species will someday thrive in the wild again. After DNA testing to figure out their sex, they were given names in CHamoru, which is the language of the Mariana Islands indigenous people. The female was named Långet, which means "heaven" or "sky" and the male was named Mames, which means "sweet."